Looking back on 2016, we’re sharing wedding advice from our featured brides on everything from why they chose their venue, to heart-fluttering ways to incorporate your pets, to what to do if you forget your marriage license. Cheers!
On Choosing A Venue
Photo: Heather Waraksa
“We wanted to choose a place we could continue to come back to for future celebrations and anniversaries. Our venue, The Crane Estate, has a boutique hotel and private beach right on the property. We actually spent our ‘mini-moon’ here right after the wedding!” – Jenn + Ian | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 12
On Dual Religion Ceremonies
Photo: Kurt Boomer
“I was raised Jewish whereas Jeremy was raised Catholic. We had family fly in from France, Singapore, Brazil and all over the US to be with us and share our special day. It was important to me and my family to have a Jewish wedding and carry on the traditions but in a modern way. For the actual ceremony, we decided to do the traditional 7 blessings but with a bit of a modern twist. We came up with 7 pillars or ideals that were intrinsic to our relationship and marriage and assigned each one to 7 of our aunts and uncles. From there, they could choose any quote, passage, song, etc. in French, English or Hebrew that they felt reflected their assigned pillar and felt special to them. We didn’t have them provide us with their reading beforehand as we wanted it to be a unique and memorable experience for everyone, including us. Everyone of course nailed it and made for some incredible, life-long memories. – Rachel + Jeremy | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 9
On Bouquet Alternatives
Photo: Jose Villa
“I have an obsession with flowers, so the wedding inspiration began from a floral mood board that I had made conveying a sense of laid back luxury. For the reception I exchanged my bouquet for a floral wrist corsage.” – Karen + Sas | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 9
On Honoring Your Pets
Photo: Joel Serrato
“Mindy Rice hand-built two magnolia trees that flanked the barn doors. I wanted to honor my favorite horse Magnolia, so I requested magnolia flowers in my bouquet. Well, Mindy took it all a step further and created these gorgeous trees that were jaw-dropping incredible! Definitely a unique, special and chic nod to my beautiful horse Magnolia!” – Lauren + Brian | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 10
Photo: Joel Serrato
“Our dog Lucas, who unfortunately was not able to join us at the wedding, had a huge presence around the bar space! Julie Song illustrated Lucas and we incorporated him into a few fun elements including the cocktail napkins, the bar sign, and finally in cookie-form by Sweet Dani B.” – Ivy + Keith | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 10
On Honeymooning
Photo: Braedon Flynn
“After our wedding we decided to take a week to just relax and really take in what we had just experienced. One week after we said our ‘I do’s’ we took off to Thailand for 2 1/2 weeks.” – Charlene + Bryan | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 10
Photo: Joel Serrato
“We had what Josh likes to call a ‘Calimoon Staycation.’ We stayed at our venue (the San Yisdro Ranch) for a few nights and then we took the scenic highway 1 to Carmel for a few nights followed by lots of wine, cheese, and chocolate in Sonoma. It was a great way to relax and enjoy the beauty right in our backyard” – Christine + Josh | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 11
On Cake Alternatives
Photo: Jose Villa
“This ‘cake’ is actually an anniversary piñata! We asked guests to drop a note into the piñata that we’ll read on our one year anniversary. It’s almost too beautiful to break!” – Ivy + Keith | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 10
Photo: KT Merry
“We wanted to make sure our guests were included in all the festivities as we felt it was more of a celebration of everyone coming together rather than just Brian and I. So we decided to skip the cake cutting ceremony and instead why not a table full of amazing cakes? We wanted to make sure we had a flavor for everyone so we had 8 different cakes plus a last minute addition of pumpkin pies.” – Lisa + Brian | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 11
On Multiple Dresses
Photo: Heather Waraksa
“I knew I wanted different dresses for the three chapters of our wedding day (welcome hour, ceremony, reception) and our welcome dinner the night before, because when else in my life was I ever going to get to wear four amazing dresses in one weekend? For the wedding I wore Sarah Seven ‘The Violet Hour.’ For the welcome dinner, welcome hour, and reception I wore three different dresses from Claire Pettibone: Ceylon, Raven, and Angelica.” – Ruby + Greg | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 11
On Forgetting the Marriage License
Photo: Heather Waraksa
“After it all, we forgot to bring our birth certificates to Montauk and therefore couldn’t get our marriage license in time for our wedding day (the Town of East Hampton requires birth certificates). So we got to do it all over again at City Hall in Manhattan two weeks later, this time with only our photographer Heather and her assistant as our witnesses. Deanna at Saipua got up at the crack of dawn to make me a beautiful scarlet red bouquet. It was like carrying a beautiful Valentine. We took the ferry over from Brooklyn, quickly made it official and then had a long boozy lunch at The Odeon just the two of us. It was wildly romantic, way more than I ever would have expected. Now we have two anniversaries, which I highly recommend! We had two weddings that couldn’t have been more different, and I loved them both. But in the end, a wedding doesn’t make a marriage. Love is an action and a choice, and marriage is a process and a journey.” – Ruby + Greg | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 11
On Wedding Favors
Photo: KT Merry
“We wanted to give away something that was useful and tied into our earthy inspirations. We had a calligrapher write in rose gold ink ‘lights will guide you home’ since all of our guests were from out of town.” – Lisa + Brian | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 11
On Cocktail Hour Activities
Photo: KT Merry
“I love flowers but Brian, being the logical and realistic guy that he is, rarely buys me them because they don’t last. So I figured the wedding would be the only time he’d say yes to having my own flower stand. It was a fun activity for guests over cocktail hour. Flower crowns and corsages were made for ladies and boutonnieres for men. The leftover flowers were also made into bouquets for the ladies to take home at the end of the night.” – Lisa + Brian | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 11
Photo: Emily Reiter of Anna Delores
“During the reception, we held a polaroid challenge — a unique photo scavenger hunt challenging our guests to capture a list of moments (ex: the best dance move!) throughout the evening. It became a fun way for everyone to reminisce and relive the celebrations after the wedding.” – Ashley + Tyler | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 12
Photo: Jose Villa
“We had local Santa Ynez calligrapher Susan Silverberg join us for our cocktail hour. During this time, guests were asked to leave messages/words of advice/sweet sentiments/etc.. for us with Susan. Susan hand-calligraphed all of these messages onto unopened half-size wine bottles for us. All of these messages are still a surprise to us. One-by-one it’s been a beautifully tasteful way to continue the celebrations after the wedding.” – Kim + Tyson | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 12
On Destination Weddings Abroad
Photo: Emily Reiter of Anna Delores
“Before we started planning we asked all of our guests if they would be willing to travel to Spain. As they all said yes, the hunt for our perfect venue began! We used destination wedding tips we found in Flutter, searched blog posts for venues in Spain, and then hired a wedding planner who was based in Spain. As a gift to our parents, siblings, and wedding party, we wanted a venue where everyone could stay with us which meant it had to be large (16 rooms!). This narrowed down our options for us and we also wanted the ceremony, dinner, and dance party all in one location. Through Skype meetings, our wedding planner Philippa helped us choose a Spanish Villa, Casa Felix. From there, Philippa was instrumental in helping us navigate through the details such as signing paperwork, deciding on vendors who knew the venue well, and also coordinating our event at Casa Felix. I will admit it was nerve-racking choosing a venue before we saw it in person but once we were able to visit Casa Felix, about six months before the wedding, it took our breath away. From the moment we stepped into the Villa, we knew it was the perfect venue and we were so excited to share it with our friends and family.” – Ashley + Tyler | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 12
On Eloping
Photo: Lacie Hansen
“Previously being in the wedding industry, people always assumed that I would want a big over the top wedding. In reality, planning so many other weddings made me want a really intimate, small, meaningful wedding with our immediate family, and thankfully Jeremy was definitely on board with that.” – Ellen + Jeremy | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 12
On Alternative Rehearsal Dinners
Photo: Michelle Beller
“In lieu of a traditional rehearsal dinner, Tyson and I hosted a welcome gathering for all of our guests at the historic Mattei’s Tavern in the town of Los Olivos. It was a perfectly intimate setting where our family and friends, who had traveled from all across the States, could relax, enjoy good food and wine, and revel in the beauty of one of our most favorite places. It felt like a big Sunday night family dinner. Plus, it was a chance to spend even more quality time with everyone!” – Kim + Tyson | Flutter Magazine Issue No. 12
Great advice and gorgeous images!
Incorporating your dog is such a sweet idea!